Dynamic Character In John Updike's A & P

The protagonist in “A&P” by John Updike is a dynamic character because he reveals himself as an adolescent who is immature and naive at the beginning of the story and changes into a character who is mature and ready to start a new chapter of his life in the end. The way Sammy describes his work, other people, and the choice he makes at the end reveals him as a dynamic character. Sammy’s attitude about his job and his actions in the store reveal his lack of care and interest for the store’s wellbeing. Sammy cares little for his customers and he finds them to be a nuisance. He wants the customers to leave him alone and let him do his job as seen in this quote, “I stood there….trying to remember if I rang it up or not..she’d never seen a mistake
In the beginning he acts without thinking and does not consider the possible repercussions. When Lengel confronts the girls, Sammy immediately decides to defend them. He does so in the one way he thinks will have an effect, by saying, “I quit.” He naively comes to the conclusion that quitting is the right thing to do. If he is more mature, he would be able to realize that quitting is not the right decision. He is given the opportunity to keep his job, yet he still does not take it. When told he has another chance he instead begins to leave, “I pull the bow at the back of my apron and start shrugging it off my shoulders..” He hands over his apron and confirms his resignation. He still does not see the future struggles he will face by quitting his job. After he initially quits and once he begins to leave he comes to the realization that he has nowhere to go. He starts to understand what he has done and how it will affect him. He begins to fear for the future as stated, “My stomach kind of fell as I felt how hard the world was going to be to me hereafter.” He finally begins to look at things in a mature way rather than the temperamental and juvenile way he has in the past. He quit his job in a moment of passion and realizes that this will only be hard for him in the long run.
In conclusion, the protagonist in “A&P” by John Updike is a dynamic character as he is shown as an adolescent who is immature and naive at the beginning of the story and transforms into a character who is mature and ready to take on a new life. This can be seen throughout the way Sammy describes his work, other people, and the choices he makes in